Catching colds as a baby could increase cardiovascular disease risk

Babies prone to infections such as the common cold may be more likely to develop cardiovascular disease later in life, groundbreaking new research has found.

Melbourne researchers have found a potential link between the number of infections a child has in the first 12 months of life and heart disease.

Previous studies show when adults contract infections it can result in inflammation, causing changes to fats and cholesterols and increasing their risk of cardiovascular disease.

The highest incidence of infections occurs in a person’s first year of life, so a new world-first study, led by the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, is examining the impact infections at that young age have in later life.

“Even quite trivial infections that wouldn’t usually result in a parent taking their kid to the doctor result in increased inflammation and these changes to fats and cholesterols that in an adult would indicate an increased risk of later cardiovascular disease,” lead author of the study Dr Toby Mansell told 3AW Breakfast.

Researchers have not yet established whether this increased inflammation has health consequences in the long-term.

Press PLAY below to hear more about the world-first study